Venom: Woody Harrelson Reportedly In Talks for Henchman Role

Director Ruben Fleischer is bringing his Zombieland star Woody Harrelson in for Venom. Sony is still in the early stages of their deal with Marvel Studios to share Spider-Man's big screen rights, but they want more. Spider-Man: Homecoming is currently the highest grossing superhero movie of the year after all, and Sony is looking to strike while the iron is hot. In order to do this, they are launching a hopeful cinematic universe populated with Spidey's supporting characters. The catch however, is that Tom Holland's Peter Parker won't be involved.

Kicking off their plans is Tom Hardy starring in the lead role of Venom. Sony gathered a talented supporting cast around their star so far in order to support Fleischer's vision. Actors like Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed, Jenny Slate, and more joined prior to production starting. Filming is currently underway, but they all may be getting a new cast member.

Variety reports Woody Harrelson is in talks to be the latest actor to join the cast. He will reportedly play a henchman, but where his allegiance lies isn't stated. The mystery surrounding his role falls in line with the secrecy surrounding the movie in general, so Harrelson could be the latest contender to be playing Carnage. It also marks Harrelson and Fleischer's return to working together, after doing so previously with Zombieland.

The role being described as vaguely as this will surely spark speculation he could indeed be Carnage. He is arguably the biggest star outside of Hardy now attached to the project, and comic book movies tend to cast big names for villains. It's been confirmed that Carnage is included in Venom, so somebody has to play him. If it isn't Harrelson, it may very well be Ahmed after all, or someone even more unknown like Scott Haze. However, Harrelson is coming in late in the game, so that could signify a smaller role than the big bad. In fact, maybe it's for a role as one of the symbiote hosts in the 'Lethal Protector' inspired story.

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He already has the history with Fleischer that should make the transition easier, and will only be a bigger name come next year after Solo: A Star Wars Story debuts. That's not to say Harrelson isn't already widely known, but he'll be even fresher in people's minds. Thanks to roles in The Hunger Games, War for the Planet of the Apes, The Edge of Seventeen, True Detective, No Country for Old Men, and more, he's shown a wide range so far. Whatever role he ultimately plays here, Venom will finally give Harrelson a superhero movie to put on his résumé.